Published on: January 23, 2024 at 3:00 PM

By: Katie Jackson / Alabama Living

Imagine an island where birds of all colors, shapes and sizes fill the skies – and the trees and the beaches and the surf.

Actually, there’s no need to imagine it, because just such an island exists right off Alabama’s Gulf Coast, and it is a sanctuary for both birds and people.

Dauphin Island, a 6-square-mile barrier island 30 miles south of Mobile, is home to 1,800 permanent residents and thousands of annual visitors who come there to enjoy world-class fishing, pristine beaches, first-rate environmental education opportunities and an almost-extinct old-school beach town charm. It’s also an important part of the state’s ecosystem.

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